Philippine soldiers backed by air support killed 19 Muslim separatist rebels in separate clashes in the country's troubled south, the military said. Lt. Col. Julieto Ando, spokesman for the military's 6th Infantry Division, was quoted as saying by Associated Press that soldiers backed by rocket-firing planes encountered about 100 Moro Islamic Liberation Front insurgents Friday in three separate areas in a marshy region in Maguindanao province. He said three soldiers were slightly wounded and rejoined the military operation. Rebel spokesman Eid Kabalu denied Ando's report, dismissing it as «military propaganda.»
